


Peppermint and Lavender (and Coffee)

by 2tiedships2



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alpha Louis, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Coffee Shops, Fluff, Humor, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, No Smut, Omega Harry, Or Is It?, Pining, Protective Louis, Strangers to Lovers, The unfortunate tag of, nouis friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-16
Updated: 2020-06-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:41:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,028
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24725461
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/2tiedships2/pseuds/2tiedships2
Summary: “He was there again,” Louis announced by way of greeting. “Lottie was right and she can never know.”"What the fuck are you talking about?” Niall asked as he snapped his laptop closed.“The omega, Niall. He was there today. Just sitting in the corner looking pretty. Or at least his back is. He hasn’t turned around when I’m available to see. I know he’s beautiful though.”"Okay?” Niall questioned. “What does that have to do with Lottie?”Louis let out a huff. "She told me I shouldn’t work at a coffee shop. She was right.”Or the one where Louis might have met the love of his life in a coffee shop. But that’s not how it’s supposed to happen.
Relationships: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson
Comments: 36
Kudos: 608





	Peppermint and Lavender (and Coffee)

**Author's Note:**

> I needed to write something that wasn't my current WIP and this is what happened.
> 
> As always a massive thank you to [Lynda](http://wait4ever.tumblr.com) for helping me with everything writing, beta-ing and beyond.
> 
> Thanks so much to [Mia](http://archiveofourown.org/users/we_are_the_same) for the assist with editing. And to [Susette](http://lululawrence.tumblr.com) for your continued support.
> 
> Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. I have no association with the band One Direction and those surrounding them, please don't share this work with anyone in the band.
> 
> Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy!

Louis knew he should have turned off his alarm and just stayed in bed this morning. Unfortunately, the only person he had to blame was Niall. And really, Niall wasn't even to blame. Kind of. Mostly. It was just unfortunate that his flatmate yelled at him to wake up after Louis had hit his snooze button for the fourth time. If it weren't for Niall knocking on his bedroom door though, Louis would have hit snooze one final time before turning it off for good. Damn the consequences of not showing up to work. If he were fired, he could walk two extra blocks and get a job at a different coffee shop. 

Or, better yet, not work at a coffee shop at all. Because, honestly, a coffee shop was the most cliché place to meet the love of your life. Or at least Lottie thought so. She had literally groaned when Louis told her about his temporary job at Starbucks. Which... rude. But apparently she had read too many stories about characters meeting in coffee shops and she didn't want Louis to suffer the same fate. Maybe he should have asked where Lottie was getting her information from. How many coffee shop stories could there be to cause his sister to disapprove of his job? 

Besides, everyone already knew that he wanted to have a job as a stockbroker before he sought out his mate. It had been his dream job since watching Will Smith in The Pursuit of Happyness and when Louis presented as an alpha, he knew that he had a fighting chance to become a successful one. Sure, he still got mistaken for a beta at first glance, but he was an alpha damn it. Starbucks would be in the past and he'd be making good money to provide for his omega. 

Louis scowled up at the ceiling as his mind returned to how his alarm had gone off and he made the unfortunate decision to dutifully show up to work instead of being fired. He should be filling out the application for an internship he found yesterday, not laying here pining after an omega that had sat in the corner of the store for two hours. They hadn't even talked for fuck’s sake. Louis had to sneak a glance at the cup of iced tea Perrie was making just so he could see the name for the order. Louis could only guess that the omega's name was Harry. Although there was a chance it could also be Harriet, Harrie or Larry. Perrie's handwriting wasn't exactly easy to read when it was scribbled across a cup. Either way, Louis had decided the omega looked like a Harry so that was that.

When it came down to it he'd probably never even see Harry again, so the whole point of pining was a waste of time. The fact that Harry stayed for two hours probably just meant the omega needed the store’s wi-fi service. Maybe he was from out of town and the hotel wi-fi was shit. Yeah. That was a solid explanation. 

\----

Thankfully Niall was home when Louis got back from work the next day. After grabbing a beer from the refrigerator, Louis joined his best friend on the couch. 

"He was there again," Louis announced by way of greeting. "Lottie was right and she can never know."

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Niall asked as he snapped his laptop closed.

Louis waved his hands in a nonsensical pattern. Why couldn't Niall just read his thoughts? 

"The omega, Niall. He was there today. For, like, two hours. Just sitting in the corner looking pretty. Or at least his back is. He hasn't turned around when I'm available to see. I know he's beautiful though."

"Okay?" Niall questioned. "What does that have to do with Lottie?"

Louis let out a huff. "She told me I shouldn't work at a coffee shop. She was right."

"Wait, what?" Niall asked as he grabbed the remote and turned the TV on. "Why would she not want you to get a job. You don't get paid during your internship that you haven't even started. I can't afford rent on my own."

Louis shook his head. "No, it's not that. She warned me about working at Starbucks. Or it was kind of a scolding since I was already hired, I guess. Whatever. She said finding the love of my life in a coffee shop was too cliché and so I should avoid them. It’s not like I’m looking to mate or anything though. Which means I can't be watching a store patron while I make lattes all day. But that omega is there and I can smell his peppermint and lavender scent over the constant smell of coffee. Which has to mean something, right?"

"I'm so confused right now," Niall stated. "What's wrong with meeting someone at a coffee shop? What's cliché about it?"

Louis shrugged. "She didn't really give me specifics. Only that she's read too many stories about couples meeting there."

"Well obviously if there are a lot of stories about finding true love at a Starbucks then it sounds like a totally worthy place to find your mate. I say go for it."

Louis leaned over and faceplanted onto the empty couch cushion. 

"I think you're blowing this out of proportion," Niall stated as he started to flip through the channels.

"He seems tall," Louis mumbled into the cushion. "Like, a lot bigger than me. I'm probably not even his type."

"I really don't understand how you're practically referring to the lad as the love of your life when you haven't even seen him."

"He has nice shoulders," Louis said into the couch cushion. "What else is there to know?"

"Name..."

"Harry," Louis said as he sat back up. "His name is Harry. Or Harriet. Or Larry. Fuck. Why do I always get stuck at the drive-thru window when he gets up to grab his order?"

"Ooh, if his name is Harry then we can also call him Larry," Niall said with far too much excitement. 

Louis gave him a blank stare. He wasn't even sure he wanted to know what Niall was getting at.

"If his name is Harry,” Niall explained, “then we can, like, combine your names into Larry. Although I guess that means  _ your  _ name would also be Larry and that could be confusing. Nevermind. Work on seeing the front of his body and we can go from there."

Louis faceplanted back onto the couch cushion. What was wrong with him? He had never had a reaction like this to an omega before. It could be some sort of alpha primal instinct, he supposed. But why? What made this omega so special?

Whatever it was, Louis needed to get it worked out soon.

\----

The problem was that Harry ordered his drink on the Starbucks mobile app. So the only time he came to the counter was to quickly grab the beverage. By the time Louis realized his order had been called, Harry was already sitting back down. Harry had been here an hour and Louis still hadn't seen the man's face. 

The other problem was that Harry was sitting in the same place for the third day in a row. He came in (when Louis was at the drive-thru window) and immediately grabbed a counter seat in the very corner of the store. Honestly. What were the chances of this? 

He needed an intervention. 

"Louis, why do you look like you're high?" Perrie asked as she bumped him in the shoulder. "Are you okay? You're not actually high are you?"

Louis scrunched his face in confusion before asking, "Why would you think that?"

Perrie let out a giggle. "I'm serious. You look high."

"I'm not..." Louis clamped his lips together as a fresh wave of peppermint and lavender washed over him. He glanced between Harry's back and Perrie. Taking a cursory glance around the store it looked like no one else seemed to be affected by the scent of the omega in the corner. 

"If Harry orders another drink," Louis instructed, or more like begged. "I need you to make it wrong. Like, really wrong."

Perrie opened her mouth to say something but no words came out. She remained silent as she glanced between Louis and Harry's back a few times. 

"Is Harry an omega?" Perrie whisper-yelled. "I thought he was alpha. Or are you into alphas?"

"He's omega," Louis said quietly. "And it's been three days of him coming in here and I still haven't seen his face. So if I'm not up at the front counter when he places his order, can you please make it so wrong that he'll come back up to get it remade?"

"Lou, it smells like coffee in here," Perrie unnecessarily pointed out. "How are you smelling the omega's scent so strongly? That's why you look high isn't it?"

Louis rolled his eyes. "I don't look high. Just... make sure his drink is disgusting and let me remake it. Please."

Perrie let out a soft snort. "I don't really approve of purposefully making a drink wrong, but just this once."

"Thank you," Louis said, giving Perrie a quick peck on the cheek. "When Jessica gets here will you tell her too? In, like, some sort of code so she doesn't know why. I don't need her to know anything about this."

"You better hope Harry orders another drink soon," Perrie said. "It's not going to be easy keeping her in the dark."

"True," Louis agreed. "She is far too nosy for her own good."

Perrie nodded her head in agreement as she headed to the cash register to take a customer’s order. Louis needed to find a way to break the Starbucks app so Harry would have to order in person. 

\----

About fifteen minutes later, Jessica peeked her head into the back room where Louis was busy packaging cookies.

"Perrie said it’s time, Louis," Jessica advised. "Would like you to share what she means by that?"

"Nope," Louis said, popping the P. "Not today, at least."

"So tomorrow?" Jessica asked hopefully.

"I'll get back to you. In the meantime, I have a drink to make."

Jessica moved out of the way as he headed out to the front of the store. His first instinct was to look over to the corner of the room where he found Harry moving to take his usual counter seat. Motherfucker. The omega wasn't seriously going to just drink something he didn't order, was he?

"Perrie!" Louis hissed as he sidled up to her side. "Why is he sitting down? Did you not make it wrong?"

"Give me some credit," Perrie scoffed. "I gave him a completely ruined iced tea. He ordered it with no added sugar and I "accidentally" put in four pumps of it. There's no way he'll drink it if he doesn’t like the extra sugar. And if he does, I'd say stay away from him. Coffee shop romances never work out anyway."

"Why do people keep saying that?" Louis asked. "Where is this information coming from?"

Perrie shrugged. "I read fanfiction every now and then. A lot of the fanfiction is actually better than published books. And it's free so why not?"

"My sister reads fanfiction?" Louis asked. Is that where Lottie got this information? What the fuck was she reading about to gain all of this insight into coffee shops?

"How would I know?" Perrie inquired with a raised eyebrow. "Although if she does I'd be curious what her favorite tropes are. I'm guessing not coffee shop AUs."

"What the fuck does that..."

"Excuse me," a voice from behind him asked. Louis' eyes widened and Perrie gave him a wink before walking away.

Louis slowly turned and came face to face with the omega. Harry's shoulders were nothing compared to the rest of him. Which was saying something, because Louis really did have a thing for men with nice shoulders. It was a rare trait in omegas though since they were usually of a slighter build. Harry's beauty was practically indescribable. Except for the frown that was deepening the longer Louis didn't respond. 

Louis made an attempt to pull himself together as he moved to stand in front of Harry, cursing the shop's counter for keeping him farther away than desired. Of course, the counter did nothing to dim the scent of peppermint and lavender. Hopefully Harry wouldn't notice how affected Louis was by the omega's scent.

"How can I help you?" Louis finally said. Being able to form words was a good thing. 

"I, um, I think there's something wrong with the tea I ordered," Harry said softly. "I mean, it's okay, I guess. But I just wanted to let you know. Maybe it's the machine or a bad batch and I guess I don't want other people to get sugary drinks too?"

Harry sounded nervous. He smelled nervous. Harry certainly didn't look like the average omega, but his temperament seemed to fall in line with one. And just as he had guessed, Harry was in fact much bigger than Louis... both in height and build. It was slightly daunting at first and Louis instantly knew that it would cause confusion to the outsider as to who was alpha and who was omega. Not that Louis would care about that. But if Harry was nervous about pointing out that his tea was made incorrectly, he may not be too keen on the idea of being with a much smaller alpha. Louis needed to fucking concentrate. They hadn't even talked yet and that was the first step in any relationship. Louis' thoughts were a jumbled mess and there was an unsure omega standing in front of him. 

Louis smiled and reached out to take the cup of sugary iced tea out of Harry's much larger hand. 

"Let me remake it for you," Louis offered. "No one should have to drink something they didn't order. Especially you."

Louis internally groaned. Had he just said that? 

"Especially me?" Harry asked quietly.

Right. So the comment had been stated out loud. Louis looked over from where he had started to remake Harry's drink and found the omega biting his lip. Louis could still sense the nerves in Harry's pheromones, although thankfully they seemed to be diminishing. That had to be a good sign. 

Concentrate. For fuck's sake. 

"Yes," Louis said decisively, pausing his task to look Harry in the eyes. "Especially you."

"Can I ask what you mean?" Harry inquired. He rushed his words when he continued saying, "Nevermind. You shouldn't have to explain."

Louis didn't even have a proper answer. It's not like he could just say that Harry was the most amazing, beautiful, kind omega he had ever met. They still hadn't had any sort of introduction. That was probably moving a little too fast. 

Louis shrugged, attempting nonchalance when giving his bullshit answer. "I couldn't help but notice you over there in the corner. You're obviously working hard on something. Maybe you have a goal set to finish a project, or whatever, and an ice tea is your reward. It's not much of a reward if your money is wasted on a sugared down drink. Or any other poorly made drinks if you come back."

As Louis snapped the lid onto the freshly made cup of tea he looked up to find a blush creeping up Harry's cheeks. 

"Is it okay that I stay here for so long during the day?" Harry asked. "I don't want to get in the way of other people that may need the seat. My new flat is nice, of course, but I like how sunny it is in this store."

Harry's blush deepened and Louis had no idea why. It was endearing nonetheless. 

"You can stay here all day, if you want," Louis said softly as he handed Harry his new drink. "I certainly don't mind." 

Harry smiled wide at Louis' response and Louis about died at seeing the dimples that appeared on the omega's cheeks. Louis fucking loved dimples. He really wanted to make the stipulation that Harry could only stay for an extended period of time if he didn't sit with his back to the rest of the store. Louis wasn't sure he could return to just watching Harry's shoulders after this meeting. 

"Your name is Harry, right?" Louis asked, holding out his hand for a formal greeting that was long overdue. "I'm Louis."

"Yes," Harry confirmed as he took Louis' hand in a light handshake. Louis gave a quick squeeze to Harry's hand before they released. Maybe Louis was just making it up but he thought he noticed another faint blush on Harry's cheeks when the omega responded. "It's good to meet you, Louis."

"Hey Louis," Jessica called from behind him and he internally groaned. "Do you know if we have any more brownies?"

Harry smiled and gave a quick wave as he grabbed a straw and headed back to his seat without another word. 

"Louis?" Jessica asked again, pulling Louis' gaze away from Harry's retreating figure. 

Right. He had a job to do. One of which was to decide if he wanted Perrie to ruin all of Harry's drinks in the hope that the man would return to the counter throughout the day.

\----

Louis literally gasped when he saw Harry walk in the next day. Four days in a row. Not that Louis was complaining but he had to wonder if Harry actually disliked the new flat that he had mentioned. Unless... maybe Harry just so happened to like the alpha employee. And Louis was the only alpha here. Working in a Starbucks wasn't the sort of job alphas sought out unless it was upper management. No matter the reason, Harry was wearing a short sleeve shirt today and Louis wasn't going to be able to concentrate with those toned arms on display. 

Which begged the question. What kind of genes did Harry have that resulted in him looking like  _ that _ while also being an omega? It was confusing as fuck is what it was. But in a cool way. It was also curious why Harry didn't have an alpha. Not that Louis had checked for a bondmark the moment he came face to face with the omega or anything. Ish.

"Holy shit, Louis," Perrie said, poking him in the arm to gain his full attention. "Are you sure he's an omega? And are you sure that he's not straight? He looks nice in that shirt and I'd totally go for him."

Louis was honestly quite proud at how he managed to contain a growl in response to Perrie's inquiry. Instead he settled for the harshest glare in the history of glares. 

Perrie held her hands up in surrender. "I was kidding. Kind of. For the sake of my life I'll say I was. You can stop with the look now."

Louis couldn't help the laugh that escaped him. "Sorry. That wasn't intentional or anything."

Perrie snorted. "I bet. Also, in case you haven't noticed yet, no one is sitting in the corner today."

Louis swung around in the direction of the seat Harry seemed to have claimed as his own. He wasn't there. 

"By the window, Louis."

"For your information," Louis stated as he looked around the room. "The entirety of this store is surrounded by windows."

"Don't be jealous that I noticed first," Perrie said, poking Louis in the arm again. "Jealousy isn't a good look on anyone."

"Don't you have work to do?" Louis asked, not even looking at Perrie. Instead he watched Harry settle at a small table that provided a clear view of the front of the omega's body. 

"I have a feeling I'm going to be doing a lot of your work today," Perrie mumbled. "So I guess so."

\----

Something was wrong. Louis smelt it before he even saw anything. 

"Jessica can you take over the register for me?" Louis asked, looking in the direction of where Harry was seated. "Just for a minute."

"Sure," Jessica happily agreed, leaving her job of restocking the pastry shelf. 

Louis grabbed a cup and started in on making an iced peach tea. No one had ordered one but the task provided him a better view of Harry's table. Louis frowned when he saw an alpha sitting across from him. The alpha practically dwarfed Harry. Was this the type of guy Harry liked? Did Harry prefer to be the smaller one in a relationship? 

Disappointment ran through Louis until the scent that had caught his attention returned. Fear. Or uncertainty? Unfortunately, he didn’t know Harry well enough to pick up the full meaning of the omega’s pheromones. Either way, Louis knew that Harry was uncomfortable in the situation he was in.

Louis watched as Harry withdrew into himself, making himself smaller as if submitting to the alpha across from him. 

"What's wrong?" Perrie asked quietly. "Why are you frowning?"

Louis didn't even turn to address her, instead keeping his full attention on Harry. 

"Something's wrong," Louis responded. "I don't know what but I can smell it."

"I honestly don't know how you can smell him over the overwhelming scent of coffee in here," Perrie stated. "But I'd say you might want to do something about it if he's, like, calling out to you or something. It doesn't seem like the alpha sitting there can smell it. Or I guess maybe he just doesn’t care how Harry feels."

Louis nodded blindly as he noticed Harry glance in his direction. Even with just the quick look Louis could see a sense of pleading in the omega's eyes. 

"I'll take over, Lou," Perrie said softly. "Do what you need to do."

Louis nodded and gave a tight squeeze to Perrie's shoulder in a show of thanks before grabbing the iced tea he had made and heading to Harry's table. 

"Sorry I'm late, Harry," Louis said once he was standing in front of the small table. It looked even smaller with the large alpha occupying the space. "I had a few things I had to finish up. Are you ready to go?"

Relief filled the air as Harry nodded.

"Don't you work here?" the alpha asked sharply. "We're having a conversation so maybe you should get back to work."

Louis noticed Harry stiffen at the alpha’s words. Louis knew he was overstepping when he reached over and grabbed the back of Harry's neck. He didn't let go and watched as the burly alpha looked between Louis and Harry. 

"You've got to be kidding," the alpha growled. "There's no fucking way you're his alpha. He would smell like you if he was."

"Maybe you missed it through the scent of coffee," Louis snarled. 

Despite Louis' attention being directed at the alpha he still felt a shiver run through Harry's body. He quickly glanced at Harry who gave a silent nod. They'd obviously have to talk about it later but for now Louis squeezed Harry's neck harder and dug his thumb into where Harry would one day have a bondmark. 

The scent of Harry's slick almost knocked Louis over as Harry looked up and said the word Louis had wanked to the previous night. 

"Alpha."

"What a joke," the disgusting alpha spat out as he pushed back his chair to leave. "I don't know what you're playing at but there's no way he would choose an alpha who works in a fucking coffee shop."

Louis' mind whirled as he watched the alpha leave the store. Harry wasn't his omega, yet his response to Louis playing alpha was so fucking real. Harry would have gotten slick with the pressure of Louis' thumb as an automatic response. But there was no hiding the fact that Harry was wet. Like, really wet. His body had responded to Louis as if he were actually his omega. 

Most importantly was that he had called Louis alpha. Did he really think Louis was his alpha? Did he mean to say it at all? Or was Harry just saying it to get rid of the stranger? It was obviously effective. But confusing as fuck for Louis. They had only talked once. There was no way. Plus, they were in a Starbucks. As previously pointed out, things like finding one's mate weren't meant to happen in a coffee shop.

"I guess I better go," Harry said softly. Neither of them had moved and Louis suddenly realized he was still holding onto Harry's neck. 

"Sorry," Louis replied, dropping his hand. "I, um, I guess I wasn't sure what to do to get him to leave. You wanted him gone, right?"

Harry nodded up at where Louis still stood over him. 

"Can I, um... can I sit for just a minute?" Louis asked, gesturing to the now vacant seat.

Harry furrowed his brow, as if unsure how to answer, but nodded nonetheless.

"I'm sorry," Louis said again. "I've never done that to an omega. But..."

"Never?" Harry interrupted. "Why did you do it then?"

Louis had no fucking idea. He was obviously trying to show the alpha that Harry was taken so that the man would leave Harry alone. An alpha digging a finger into an omega's bonding spot always caused a bit of slick. It was biology. Granted, one Louis never understood. Because why did an alpha grabbing an omega’s neck like that result in said omega releasing slick? It made no sense. So Louis had expected a small amount of slick for the other alpha to smell. That would have worked just fine. But Harry was fucking wet and had addressed Louis as alpha.

Louis needed to concentrate. He could think about later. Maybe give Liam a call for insight. 

"Um, I guess it was the first thing that came to mind?" Louis finally responded. "I mean, maybe it was more of a gamble, but it seemed like it might be the most effective way to get rid of the alpha. It seemed better than having an argument with that guy. I'm really sorry I forced that on you Harry. Truly."

"It's okay," Harry said softly, looking down at his hands. "No one has ever done that. I... can we pretend I didn't respond like I did? I thought omegas were only supposed to release a small amount of slick when an alpha did that."

Harry seemed to be trying to hide the deep blush on his beautiful cheeks. He couldn't hide his pheromones though. The poor lad was embarrassed. 

"If you want to, of course," Louis assured. Although they both knew it was a lie. At least on Louis' part. There was no way he was going to forget how Harry addressed him as alpha. Even if it was just that one time. 

"Can I ask you an unrelated question?" Louis inquired. "Please don't feel like you have to answer though, okay?"

Harry furrowed his brows but nodded in consent. 

"You seemed afraid," Louis said quietly. "Was it just that alpha? Thank you for letting me know you wanted my help."

"I let you know?" Harry asked, disbelief laced in his words. 

"I mean, I just noticed that something might be wrong, is all. I could only assume it was the alpha."

Harry nodded again. "I don't... I mean, I know it's basically standard that alphas are always bigger than omegas. But the people I grew up around were always shorter than me. That's what I'm used to. So when someone is a lot bigger I guess it's just kind of intimidating? I know that's weird and probably doesn't make sense. I wasn't, like, afraid of that guy or anything. But I also don't appreciate how he just sat down without invitation and started talking to me about my size and how me being omega wasn't right."

"What the fuck?" Louis burst out, a little too loudly for their surroundings. "So was he going to make his way over to me next and say how I couldn't possibly be an alpha because I look more like a beta?"

Harry let out the cutest giggle and Louis was thrilled to see Harry's dimples appear. 

"I should probably go," Harry stated as he quickly started to pack up his things. "I'm sure your coworkers would like you back."

Louis nodded as he stood up. "Yeah. I'm sorry again. About the neck thing."

"It's okay," Harry said, another blush forming on his cheeks. Louis couldn't help but wonder why his apology caused Harry to blush.

"Harry?" Louis said before turning to head back to work. 

Harry pulled his attention away from where he was shoving his laptop into his bag, looking up at Louis with questioning eyes.

"Please don't let today affect future visits. Come enjoy the sunlight the store has to offer while you work on whatever you're doing. It's always nice to have regular customers. I know you've only started coming in a few days ago but you've already been classified as a regular. There's no changing that now."

Harry smiled. "Thanks, Louis. I'll be here."

Louis really wanted to give Harry a tight hug but managed to restrain himself. It would be inappropriate and Louis had already gone far beyond appropriate physical contact for the day.

Instead he turned and headed back to where Perrie was watching them. Who knew how much she had seen and he braced himself for the onslaught of questions that he was going to have to avoid answering. 

\----

With a promise of food, Louis was able to talk Liam into coming over to ask him some questions that had resulted from the confrontation at work. 

"Oh, good, you're already here," Louis stated as he made his way through the flat. He found Liam sitting on one of their living room couches, while Niall was sprawled out on the second couch. Louis would have preferred to keep the conversation between just Liam and himself but he should have figured that would be impossible.

"Well, hello to you Louis," Liam said flatly. "I'm good, thank you for asking."

Louis rolled his eyes. "You're here too often for formalities. Plus I'm buying you dinner."

Liam shrugged. "Fair enough."

"Right," Louis began as he moved Niall's feet out of the way to sit down. "Something happened at work today and I need some insight."

"Ooh," Niall interrupted. "With Harry. Did you decide on mating? It would be totally romantic to decide to mate in a Starbucks."

Louis shot Niall a Look. His friend merely smiled and waved his hand as if to prompt Louis to proceed.

"Who's Harry?" Liam asked. 

"The guy Louis is going to mate with, or at least take on a date. Despite Lottie saying it's a bad idea."

"And Perrie," Louis stated. "She mentioned it today. So that's two people."

"Irrelevant," Niall said, not even questioning why Perrie would be in agreement. 

"Anyway," Louis continued. "He's an omega that started to come into work three days ago, so today was his fourth day in a row. He usually stays for an hour or two. He's absolutely amazing."

"Louis is very certain of this," Niall pointed out. "Despite it taking three days to see what he looked like from the front. But he has nice shoulders and I suppose that's good enough for Louis."

Louis groaned in frustration. Maybe he should have Niall tell the beginning of the story. It would probably get finished a lot faster.

"Let's skip ahead," Louis decided. "What do you know about the omega slick switch thingy?"

"The what?" Liam and Niall asked in unison.

"What the fuck is an omega slick switch thingy?" Niall continued. "Please elaborate because you obviously made that up."

Louis sighed. "You know. Like when an alpha presses down on an omega's bonding spot and they get slick? I've never heard an official name for it and my terminology makes the most sense."

Niall snorted. "It really doesn't, but proceed. I can already tell this is going to be good."

"Anyway," Louis continued. "I could tell that Harry was uncomfortable today due to an unknown alpha sitting down at his table. So I went over to help."

"How could you tell?" Liam inquired.

"I smelled it."

"Over all of the other smells?" Niall asked. "Especially the constant scent of coffee. Did he move seats so he was sat really close by?"

"He moved seats, thank God, but still across the room. At least I could see his face today."

Liam hummed. "We'll go back to that. I want to know more about this omega slick switch thingy."

"Right, well it was obvious that Harry didn't know the alpha that had sat down at his table. And he didn't seem to enjoy the guy's company. So I tried to play it as if me and Harry were going to leave, or whatever. So I could get him out of the situation with the other alpha."

"Very nice of you," Niall commented. "Way to be a protective alpha to an omega you've only talked to once. You're on the right track."

"Hush," Louis scolded before continuing. "But the alpha wouldn't leave so I may have pressed the omega slick switch thingy on Harry's neck so he would release a bit of slick. I figured the alpha would get the point that Harry was taken. Which obviously he's not but it did make a point to the idiot alpha."

"Wait," Liam interrupted. "You made a claim on an omega? And one you don't even know? What the fuck, Lou."

"I know!" Louis exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air to emphasize his point. "It was just on instinct, or something. He did nod though as if he was okay with it."

"Um," Niall started, uncertainty lacing the single word. "Did you tell him you were going to lay claim on him before he nodded his consent?"

Louis cringed. "No?"

Liam frowned. "So couldn't he have just been nodding for you to say you were his alpha and leave it at that? I'm sure you could have been very convincing to the other alpha. Your acting lessons taught you well."

"Thanks," Louis mumbled for lack of a better response.

The room fell into silence for a few moments, as if everyone was taking time to process the event.

Louis was the one to break the silence when he continued. "He released a lot more than just a little slick like I thought was supposed to happen when you press on an omega’s neck. Like, a  _ lot _ more. Holy fuck, his scent was so fucking strong."

"Well, that's interesting," Liam admitted.

"He also turned to me and called me alpha. Or at least said the word. I don't know if he meant to say it or what. But he did."

"Oh," Liam said flatly.

"Oh?" Louis questioned.

"That might need more elaboration than Louis’ omega slick switch comment," Niall stated.

Liam looked between Louis and Niall a few times, his brow furrowed and a deep look of concentration on his face.

Niall nudged Louis with his foot and said, "I think you broke him. What do we do now?"

"Liam?" Louis asked.

"The elaboration?" Niall prompted.

"And he's come in four days in a row?" Liam finally inquired. "Isn't that a little excessive?"

Louis shrugged. "Not necessarily. We get a lot of regulars."

"And you can smell him really easily?" Liam continued. 

Louis nodded. He wasn't expecting this to turn into a sort of interrogation. Where was Liam headed with this? And where was their food that Louis had ordered on his way home?

"And he has nice shoulders," Niall noted. "That's a very important factor."

"Oh my God," Louis mumbled. "Why do I tell you anything?"

"You work tomorrow, right?" Liam asked.

Louis furrowed his brow. That was a random question to come out of this discussion.

"Yes," Louis confirmed. "Why? Do you need a perfectly proportioned Frappuccino?"

Liam scoffed. "Absolutely not."

"Seems like a totally valid question," Niall stated. "Unless there's a more important reason?"

"You might want to keep an eye on the omega," Liam said. "Just in case. And maybe mention to your boss you may need a couple of days off."

Louis glanced over to Niall who had a look of shock on his face, likely matching the one on Louis’ own.

"Elaborate!" Niall yelled as Liam dug his mobile out of his pocket. "This is not the time to be checking your messages. Are you saying that Harry is Louis' omega? Is Louis Harry's alpha?"

Louis nodded along to Niall's questions. There was no fucking way that could be true. 

"This Harry lad wouldn't have said it if it weren't true," Liam said as if it were obvious. "At least as far as I know."

"No way," Niall disagreed. "Harry could have taken acting classes too. The word alpha is a pretty easy word to say."

Liam shook his head. "Not if Louis had his hand clamped around his neck." Liam turned to Louis to verify. "You were holding his neck right? And you pressed your thumb into his bonding spot?"

"Yes?" Louis squeaked. "Why? Should that make a difference?"

Earlier in the day Louis was all for being Harry's alpha. But that was wishful thinking. And wishes didn't come true. At least not so quickly. Louis hadn't even finished filling out his internship paperwork for fuck's sake.

"That doesn't make sense, Liam," Niall said defiantly. "What if  _ you _ were in the store and had your hand clamped around Harry's neck? Does that mean you're his alpha? Again, the word alpha is pretty easy to say. And probably a sure fire way to get unwanted alphas to leave."

Liam shrugged. "Based on the fact that Harry responded to Louis as alpha, it seems to me that if I were the one holding Harry's neck and pressing on his bonding spot he would have released a little slick. Nothing else. I still can't believe you did that though, Lou. You just met." Liam paused for a moment. "On the other hand, it sounds like you may have found your mate a lot faster than you would have otherwise. I guess we'll see soon enough."

Louis bit his lip. Seriously, where was their food? He needed something else to think about. 

"Why soon enough?" Louis eventually asked.

"He responded to you. He called you alpha. If it's true he's probably going to go into heat."

"And if he doesn't go into heat?" Niall inquired.

Liam shrugged once more. "Then I guess everything that I've read about the "omega slick switch thingy" is inaccurate. And you both know I read a lot about alpha and omega dynamics."

"Which I still don't get why," Niall noted. "But to each their own, I guess."

Louis couldn't be more thankful for the buzzer to their flat ringing. Food was here and this conversation would end. Maybe. Probably not. Liam was certain to ask more questions about Harry since Louis still hadn't said anything about their initial meeting. At least they could move on from talking about the topic of mating. 

\----

Louis was nearly finished with his shift and Harry still hadn't come in. Granted, the shop was open hours after Louis got off, but still. Harry had been in before noon the previous days. Not that Louis had been paying attention or anything. 

Louis really shouldn't be concerned about Harry's absence. He shouldn't. Maybe Harry was saving money by not coming into the store five days in a row. It was completely understandable. And it's not like Louis could blame Harry for not coming in the day after the alpha incident. But still. Harry had said he wouldn't let it affect future visits. 

"Louis, would you like me to take over your search for Harry for the rest of your shift?" Perrie asked as she joined him in making an iced coffee. "You're going to break your neck from how often you keep looking over at the door." 

"What?" Louis squawked. He hadn't been paying that close attention.

Perrie rolled her eyes. "You heard me. I'm sure Harry will be in today. And if he's not, then you can spend your weekend wondering why. Although it's probably because he has other things to do than spend time in a coffee shop."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Louis mumbled.

"Well, would you spend time here if you didn't have to be here for work?"

Louis furrowed his brow. "Maybe? Probably not. Unless I was an omega and there was a really hot alpha working behind the counter. Then I might."

Perrie laughed before saying, "You're ridiculous. Stop overthinking it."

Louis gave a noncommittal grunt as he finished making his order. How was he supposed to not overthink it? What if Harry was his omega? What if he was going into an unexpected heat and Louis was stuck at work? Did Harry have someone who could help him? Would he want Louis to help even though they barely knew each other? Why hadn't Louis thought to exchange numbers? 

There was a strong possibility Perrie was right though. If Harry didn't get here by the end of his shift, Louis was going to end up spending his weekend wondering why. Which would result in worrying about the omega. Louis shouldn't have asked Liam any questions about the previous day’s events. He should have just let it go and let things run their course. But he hadn’t and now his neck was going to be sore from his constant glancing at the store's entrance.

Louis honestly couldn't think of a single time that he didn't want his work day to end but it might happen. He considered hanging around after his shift but that would cause the night team to question why. 

"I'd recommend getting that pained look off of your face before Jeremy gets here," Perrie whispered as she slid behind him to grab a cup. "You know he'll see something is up and he can be even more nosy than me and you know it."

Louis burst out in laughter. Once again she was right. Jeremy was constantly trying to find some new topic of interest. Louis pining after one of their customers would be at the top of the list. Louis couldn't help but wonder how his co-worker felt about coffee shop romances. Nevermind. They were a bad idea. Totally overrated. Louis needed to stop thinking about Harry.

"I'm here for another two hours," Perrie said as Louis resigned himself to the fact that he wasn't going to be seeing Harry for a few days. "Do you want me to text you if he comes in? Then you can rest in peace and enjoy the weekend."

Louis playfully shoved his friend in the shoulder. "I will enjoy my weekend no matter what. Besides, aren't you supposed to be against this coffee shop hookup?"

Perrie gave a wide grin. "I was. But I saw the two of you yesterday. I think it's a hopeless cause. You're going to be that couple who has to live with the fact that you met in a coffee shop."

Louis shrugged. "I'm sure we can change our story if necessary. If he comes back that is."

"He'll be back," Perrie stated assuredly. "Now go home. Or wherever you're going to celebrate having the weekend off."

Louis shook his head fondly and said his goodbyes. He couldn't help but glance towards the corner of the store before he exited. Just in case an omega with nice shoulders had happened to appear when he wasn't looking. 

No one was there and Louis was going to end up questioning all of his life decisions while attempting to not think about the peppermint and lavender scent he had been smelling throughout the week. As well as Harry's slick switch neck button thingy. 

It was going to be a long weekend.

\----

Niall wasn't home to entertain him when Louis got back, which was unfortunate. It was just as well he supposed. Louis needed to get everything sorted for the internship. A stockbroker job was waiting for him somewhere and Louis would be ready when it came along.

He was just finishing the basic application information when his mobile rang. Louis looked in the direction of the device in surprise. Nearly everyone in his contacts texted before resorting to having to actually talk. 

Louis snatched his mobile off of the table and found the incoming call to be from Perrie. They didn't really have much contact outside of work and Louis' mind immediately went to Harry. He was alive and had come in to get his daily Starbucks caffeine.

"Hello?" Louis greeted.

"Louis? Thank God," Perrie said from the other end. Louis could practically hear a sigh of relief.

"What's up?"

"I think there's something wrong with Harry," Perrie said quietly, as if making sure no one else overheard. "He's here with his laptop out and everything but he keeps glancing around the store as if looking for someone. By the way he keeps looking at me I have a feeling he's trying to find you."

"That doesn't make sense," Louis replied.

"I don't know, Lou. Maybe you could stop in?"

Louis was already searching for a pair of shoes when he agreed. "I'll be there in about fifteen minutes. Make sure he stays there, yeah?"

"Of course. Anything for you and the coffee shop couple in the making."

"Please don't ever say that again," Louis pleaded. "Or anything similar."

Perrie giggled. "We'll see. Now come get your omega."

"See you in a few," Louis said as they ended the call. He probably should have corrected her, being that Harry wasn't his omega. But the words had a nice ring to them so he let it go as he headed out the door. 

\----

Louis was practically slapped in the face by the scent of peppermint and lavender upon entering the coffee shop. He took a cursory glance around the store. It was fairly empty and thankfully void of alphas. Harry could be in serious danger due to the scent that was rolling off of him. Liam was right, Harry was definitely going into heat. 

"Harry," Louis said quietly as he slid into the seat across from him. 

Harry looked up and a sense of relief rolled off of the omega. "You're here."

Louis nodded and reached across the table to take Harry's hand, frowning at how warm he was. Harry had to know that it was unsafe for him to be out when he was going into heat like this, didn't he? 

"We need to get you out of here, love," Louis instructed. "Where do you, um... I need to get you somewhere safe. Do you have somewhere you'd like me to take you?"

Harry looked down, biting his bottom lip as he closed his laptop.

"Where to, love?" Louis prompted. 

Harry looked up, his eyes filled with uncertainty when he tentatively asked, "With you?"

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Louis couldn't help but be thrilled by the prospect. Although, Louis wasn't sure how far along Harry was in heat. Louis needed to make sure the omega was fully aware of what he was asking.

"Are you going into heat early?" Louis asked softly, standing up once he saw Harry had all of his belongings stowed away. 

Harry nodded as he proceeded to follow Louis towards the door. 

Louis took a quick look back to find Perrie watching them. He gave a small wave and silently mouthed "thank you" as he led Harry to the exit. Perrie shot him a wide smile and a thumbs up in return. He owed her. Big time. 

Once out the door, Harry looked around as if having no idea where he was headed. Louis took his hand to get Harry's full attention. 

"Do you want me to take you home? Or..." Louis squeezed Harry's hand and waited in the hope that the omega would make the decision. 

"Would you help me?" Harry asked. "Will you help me? With my heat?"

"If you're positive," Louis replied. "I would love to take care of you." 

Louis hoped he didn't sound as desperate as he felt for his need to take Harry home. But the omega was in preheat and Louis needed to get Harry prepped. Like, now.

"Where to, Harry?" Louis asked.

"With you," Harry said with pure clarity. "Preferably not my place, but I don't know if you want me at yours."

"Let's go then," Louis said, giving Harry's hand another squeeze. "I have a roommate but he's very accommodating. Or, at least he will be."

Harry giggled and Louis looked over in time to see the omega's glorious dimples. He couldn't wait to give that left dimple all of the love and attention it deserved. 

\----

Harry shifted and let out a cute snuffle sound as he woke. Louis hugged the omega's waist tight so he would know the alpha was there with him. 

"Alpha."

Louis froze. Had Harry just said what Louis thought he said? He had called Louis alpha several times the past couple of days but Harry had been in heat. There was no way that Louis could be positive that Harry meant it when everything was so new between them. 

"Are you out of heat, baby?" Louis asked before kissing the side of Harry's neck. 

"Yes, alpha," Harry said, nodding his head in confirmation. 

The scent of peppermint and lavender somehow managed to become stronger with the word. Or maybe that was just in Louis' head. It was quite possible. 

Louis released his tight hold around Harry and asked, "Will you turn over, love?"

Harry did as requested and Louis tangled their legs together once Harry was settled.

"You called me alpha," Louis stated. It was obvious but he needed face to face confirmation to justify how his entire body had reacted the first time Harry had said it in heat. Louis had wanted to bond right then and there. He hadn't, of course, but Harry did have quite a few lovebites on his body that probably wouldn't be there if he hadn’t called Louis alpha. Harry probably hadn't heard him when Louis had called him omega but he  _ knew _ that Harry was his. He could feel the invisible pull. 

"Yes," Harry confirmed. "And you called me omega. Do you feel it?"

Louis fish mouthed for a moment. Harry had heard him? Bloody hell. Louis thought the man had been completely out of it, only waking when asking to be knotted. 

Louis weaved his fingers through Harry's tousled hair and nodded. "My omega. It feels kind of like a magnet doesn't it?"

Harry gave a crooked grin, his dimple popping. Despite just coming out of heat, it was ridiculous how beautiful the man was. And he was Louis'. 

Although, there was one thing that needed to be addressed first. 

"Here's the thing," Louis began, Harry's face dropping at the seriousness of Louis' words. Louis smoothed out the frown line between his omega's brows. "It's nothing too serious. I just need to ask you a question about how we met."

Harry grimaced. "What? About me practically stalking you? I mean, not right away. But I had to keep coming into the shop because of you. Your  _ scent _ , Louis. I couldn’t stay away from it. But I also didn't think you'd want an omega asking for your number so..."

Louis leaned over and placed a soft kiss on Harry's lips. "I just want to know how you feel about having our story begin in a coffee shop."

"Our story?"

Louis gave a half shrug. "My sister Lottie, who you'll love, warned me about finding true love in a coffee shop. She said it was cliché and to be careful to not let it happen."

Harry giggled. "Oops."

Louis laughed before saying, "Yeah, oops."

"So you don't want to have met in a Starbucks?” Harry asked. “Is that a popular place to find one's mate though? Like, do too many people have that as their wedding story or something?"

Louis snorted. Lottie and Perrie were so wrong. Meeting in a coffee shop was the perfect location to find one's true love. It's where Louis found his mate and he was officially proud of that.

"I think it's a perfect meeting place," Louis said as he lightly scratched Harry's scalp. "We just need to make sure my sister knows how wrong she is in her belief that it's an overrated storyline."

"I think it will be easy enough," Harry said confidently. "I moved to London and found you within two weeks."

Louis blinked in disbelief. Two weeks? Two bloody weeks in this city and Harry had found his mate? Not that Louis was complaining or anything, but he had lived here, like, twenty-eight years (give or take twenty-five or so) and he had just now found the man he wanted to bond with. 

Louis reached behind him, slapping around on the nightstand until he found his mobile. Lottie needed to know about this immediately.

“What are you doing?” Harry asked, furrowing his brows as Louis unlocked the device.

“You’ve only been here two weeks, H?” Louis asked, directing his attention back on his omega. “Seriously?”

Harry shrugged as if it were nothing. “Yeah? Is that… is that okay? Should we take things slow?”

Louis chuckled. “I mean, I’m already taking it slow. I would be knotting you right now if I didn’t need to make you a post-heat meal. I don’t know how much slower I can go in this new relationship.”

Harry burst into laughter, the sound becoming muffled as he shoved his nose into the side of Louis’ neck. Harry breathed him in deeply and Louis revelled in the feel of his omega scenting him. 

As Harry proceeded to nose along his neck, Louis pulled up his thread of text messages with Lottie, quickly typing out.

“ _ No need for you to read any more coffee shop stories. I can just tell you about mine over and over again instead. _ ”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading and I really hope you enjoyed it! I gladly welcome and appreciate kudos and nice comments!
> 
> Should you feel so inclined, I would love you lots if you reblog my [fic post](https://2tiedships2.tumblr.com/post/621060398192476160/peppermint-and-lavender-and-coffee-9k-by)!


End file.
